Bath House Spa in the New Forest has been awarded ‘5 Bubbles’ status by the Good Spa Guide. This is their review:

The Spa in the Forest at New Park Manor was built and opened in 2005, and has been well thought through. As a guest at the hotel, you're encouraged to feel free to wander from your room to the spa in your robe. Perhaps because of the homely quality of the hotel, you actually don't feel self-conscious doing this.

The spa is purpose-built as a traditional bath house spa, and to a very high standard. Every aspect of your visit and whim has been considered. The spa is divided into areas, so that no one area intrudes on another, and each has a separate purpose and slightly different atmosphere. You enter to a spacious, wicker and soft-cushioned reception, The Juice Bar, where you can order amazing flapjacks, and tea, smoothies, juice, of course, and other bits and pieces while you browse the papers or wait for your treatments.

From this room, you can look outside to the wooden decking and people lazing on loungers in the summer, and enjoying the great outdoor Canadian hot tub. The tub is great fun, hot and very bubbly. This would be special in any season, and although we went in summer, I would love to go back when it was frosty or even snowing and sit in the hot tub looking out at the ponies and Forest beyond. You can eat outside, too, and the food is very reasonably priced, cooked in the spa building so it doesn't have far to come, all healthy and all delicious. I enjoyed the chicken breast wrapped in Italian ham with buffalo mozzarella. Beautifully presented, too.

From the reception room, you also have access to the bath house facilities. The 16-metre pool sits beside floor-to-ceiling glass with 270-degree views of the paddocks and Forest beyond, with their ponies and herds of deer. But this is only part of a series of water and thermal experiences, including: sanarium, sauna, Klafs steam room, Kneipps foot baths, Klafs experience showers, and hydro spa pools. You can dip in and out of them randomly or else follow a traditionally designed sequence, heating you up and cooling you down in turn, for ultimate health and feelings of well-being.

You can relax afterwards in the Rasul Mud Chamber. We tried their treatment for two - see what we thought below.

The treatment rooms are laid over two wood-panelled floors. The wood smells great, and reminded me of the aroma of a Scandinavian sauna. Each room is identified with a flower when in use. The treatment areas are quiet and the rooms are beautifully laid out and warm.

Treatment room for people with mobility problems/disabled guests

If you have mobility problems, you can still visit the spa, and easily access most of the facilities. There is a spacious and airy room on ground floor level dedicated to guests who are disabled. You can access the spa without needing to tackle any steps, direct from the car park. If you have any queries, or particular needs, the staff seem sincerely keen to help, and explained that if you call in advance, they can prepare things to suit you.

There is a good-sized gym separate enough from the treatment rooms not to disturb anyone, and small rooms for one-to-one or small group yoga upstairs, too. You can end your day on the roof terrace, a secluded area on the roof of the spa, but one which could also accommodate post-spa drinks with a few friends, robed up and looking at the stars.

The staff are young, friendly and very attentive, without being intrusive. Many of them live "on-site" in a lodge in the grounds, and seem very relaxed with each other; there's a homely team atmosphere.

Which treatments did you have?

We had several treatments while we were there. It was fantastic! We both had a Herb and hay detox massage, and I also had a Fresh organic facial. My partner had a Hot towel cleanse facial. We also tried out the Mud House Duo together.

What were the treatments like?

Herb and hay detox massage

This treatment is 85 minutes of warming, aromatic massage. Using a heated compress containing hay and herbs, the therapist pads along your meridians, warming and soothing your skin using the heat of the compress to give a rhythmic massage along the pressure points of your body. The smell is wonderful: camomile, marigold and lavender, as well as other essential oils. It is a whole-body treatment and felt like a combination of the rigours of a lymphatic drainage massage with the long, relaxing strokes of a Hawaiian massage. It was good for relieving neck and calf tension. It was my partner's first massage, and he thought he'd be uncomfortable, but he loved it.

He also enjoyed, his Hot towel cleanse which is a more traditional, barbershop style facial for men, which opens the pores and cleans out the skin.

My Fresh organic facial was different to any other facial I've had. The therapist actually prepared the mask herself, using fresh fruit. It smelled so powerfully of fresh strawberries (they use fresh pumpkin in winter!) that I wanted to lick my face. I love neck and shoulder massage and always need it because of my "laptop back", the result of too much time spent hunched over my computer. My neck had already been soothed considerably by the herb and hay massage, and the fact that the facial also began with tension release massage in that area was a real bonus. The normal facial path of cleansing, exfoliation, mask and moisturiser was made very special by the use of fresh organic products, and the amount of head and facial massage throughout. At the end of the treatment, my therapist smoothed warm honey on my skin, which I found a bit disconcerting as I hate being sticky. But it felt lovely, and left me smelling delicious.

Our Mud House Duo was a Rasul mud treatment. Our therapist took us into a separate room, showed us different-coloured pots of mud to smooth on our bodies, then showed us the twinkling, tiled steam room where we would sit and sweat it out. We were a bit disappointed with this, to be honest. When the therapist left us, we dutifully smoothed on the mud, which was fun, and sensual, too. But it took ages for the steam to really kick in. Even when it did, it only came down about halfway. It was still enjoyable, but disappointing, compared with my previous mud chamber experiences. A Rasul needs to be steamy. If it had been, we'd have been happier. I understand that this has been sorted out now, which is good.

How did you feel afterwards?

Cosy, comfortable and snoozy. We both felt particularly good after our Herb and hay detox massages - good all round, and all through our bodies. Having this treatment really set us up for the rest of the weekend, and we would definitely recommend it.

My skin felt fantastic after the organic facial, and felt soft and "plumped up" for days. Friends commented on how fresh I looked.

Long-term effects

The biggest effect was that we really wanted to go back and have more treatments. My partner's not usually that bothered about the treatments themselves when he goes to a spa; it's the lazing around with papers, the gym, the swim and the food that he enjoys. But the treatments at the Spa in the Forest were very affecting, and nothing irritated us: no outside noise, no music stopping at the end of the CD, the therapists were expert and talked to us just the right amount, and the products used were distinctive and naturally aromatic.

Was it worth it?

Yes. If I lived near Brockenhurst, I'd join this spa and go there regularly. It's great value and the atmosphere and little touches are perfect. I never felt self-conscious or harried, and the treatments are reasonably priced. The day-spa packages are genuinely a bargain. I haven't been anywhere where you could get such good treatments, range of facilities, high quality of service and special environment for a similar price.

What else could you have?

The Spa in the Forest offers a range of bath-house treatments and experiences, and there is something to suit anyone, and for a range of reasons. You could have all the types of treatment you'd expect at a good spa - wraps, scrubs, massages, facials and foot and hand treatments - but all with an essential-oil or herbal twist, and imaginatively conceived. I think it's their packages that are really on the money, though, and they do new ones all the time, so it's worth watching out for these. Here are a few examples:

* There's a Bath House Spa Bride package for £255 that includes a body wrap, a Comfort Zone Prescriptive Facial, an eye treatment, pedicure, manicure and use of the facilities.

* There's also a special Twilight Bath House Spa for Two, that features a Rasul Mud Therapy Ceremony and a choice of a facial or back and neck massage, and of course a spell in the hot tub - summer or winter. Most day packages include lunch, too.

The Spa in the Forest also offers membership to people lucky enough to live close enough to go regularly. Check out their 12-Week Lifestyle Programmes, which help you to address all aspects of your well-being and fitness, from stress to weight loss.

What do you wish you'd known before you went?

That all guests at the hotel have free and welcome access to the bath house spa facilities. Okay, actually I did know this before I went, but I really wanted to point it out to you. If you are able to stay over at the hotel, I would.

I do wish I'd paid attention when I booked, to the person at the hotel who advised that I book a horse ride in plenty of time... The stables next to the spa offer a choice of rides - guided, group or individual deals - and the prices are good, too. But book well in advance. When we went, they had been fully booked for more than two weeks. It would be a special treat.

Any special features?

Lots! The setting, the food, the horse riding, the cosy, genuinely relaxed comfort of the hotel and the customer service. We spoke to several guests while we were there, who'd come from far and wide across the south, and from London, and we all talked about how unpretentious, calm and homely the place was. Even though I suspect none of the people there, including us, actually do live in manor houses in the New Forest, we all commented on how quickly and completely we relaxed once we arrived. It's the relaxation that comes from feeling that you're welcome, and in good hands, and not being ripped off.

Who do you think would like it?

For a day, I would go with friends. You can book out the spa for the day if there are 12 of you, and it would be a great hen-day alternative to going out drinking or for a meal. You would have a chance to relax and hang out with your friends, and be pampered at the same time.

It's also a great place for mums and daughters, as it's informal and unintimidating, without being too trendy or modern.

But I think it's the best place for a break with your partner, especially if you have busy lives or kids, and you want to spend some time together away from home, yet still feel "at home".

Why did you give the spa this rating?

We gave the Spa in the Forest 5 bubbles because no fewer bubbles would do. I think they have got everything right: customer service, food, comfort, treatments, product range, design of the spa, facilities. The Spa in the Forest offers a genuinely, uniquely relaxed experience in a wonderful setting for great value.

(See more on how we rate the spas.)

Would you go again?

I have already booked.